Hip-hop clothing stores and clubs

Hey all!!

O-genki desuka??

I am going to Tokyo this summer and I was wondering about a few things...

I know that Hip-Hop is a really big genre in Japan and I wanted to visit at least one hip-hop club in Tokyo. I heard that ''Club Harlem'' in Shibuya is a realy good club BUT the only downside is their ''no foreigners without a japanese companion'' policy...is this rule still strictly followed or has it become more relaxed? If anybody has been to this club then i'd like to know your thoughts! For example, what the atmosphere is like etc.

In addition, I intend to do alot of shopping and want to visit some REALLY good hip hop clothing stores, does anyone know any in Tokyo?? Apart from Bape (I already know about that) LOL

Doumo arigatou gozaimasu!!! (^_^)

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have you been in Tokyo before? i was there and this black guy took me to his shop where you would buy Urban clothes...the prices were outrages...$100 usd for a shirt that looked like i can get it at Marshalls or JC Penny for 20 buck...i quickly ran out of the store...trust me clothes is more expensive there then where it is in your home town...good luck...

Hey dvang82!

Nah I have never been to Tokyo before. When i go this summer it will be my first trip so I am very very excited!!!

Yeah i heard that prices in Japan, especially Tokyo are really expensive...but I wanted to check out the hip hop scene as i know that Hip-hop is massive over there. So I wanted to visit some urban, cool, funky hip hop stores!

In london, there aren't really any stores like that to be honest. We have a Bape store (flagship store so there's only one) but that's about it really...the rest you have to really search for! Which i don't mind doing.

So if there are any stores that you know in Tokyo (like the one's that aren't really common, the secret hard to find stores) then I would really appreciate knowing!!!

Hontouni arigatou!

Walk down Takeshita dori in Harajuku when you get here- if you look at all like you might be the kind of person who wants to buy hip hop clothes, the African guys will be very happy to show you hip hop clothing stores- there are quite a few of them who wait on the street and try to bring in customers. Don't expect any bargains in Tokyo.

Ahhh Sou desuka??

Doumo Sumimasen!!

I have heard of takeshita dori so i shall definitely check it out!!

Oh, I also know that there's a shop near or on takeshita dori street where you can go and bedazzle your personal items, like phones, cameras, glasses etc. I watched it on a japanese programme once but they never said the name of the store!! (¬_¬) Do you happen to know which store i am refering to??

Doumo!!

It's been a while since I've lived in Japan but here goes:

CLUBS
I went to Harlem once or twice. The foreigner policy was originally aimed at men (I'm a black woman and was never questioned about getting into the club). Harlem has great DJs and is a huge club but I didn't care for the atmosphere. I guess it's a great club if you're young and a tourist as that's the make-up of the club-goers.

I LOVED Shibuya Nuts. It's not on the main strip as Harlem and Atom. Unfortunately I can't remember the street name, but it was on the other side of Shibuya station and a more secluded area. Great DJs and atmosphere. Smaller than Harlem, but I found there to be less posers and black wannabes at the club and more people that had a general interest in hip-hop.

Club Unity isn't too far from Nuts and it was a decent club. It was my club to go to when Nuts was too crowded. But the crowd was a little older.

Ageha is in Shin-kiba. It's more expensive then the other clubs but it's HUGE. They have specific hip-hop nights that would have well-known DJs, and performers.

Ikeburo Bed is another hip-hop club. It's definitely grimier and smaller then the places I mentioned above. The scene there is much more underground.

The last time I was in Tokyo was in 2007, so I don't know how much has changed with these clubs since then.

As for clothing, if you're a female, then you can find clothing stores in the main shopping areas of Tokyo. Shibuya 109, Atre in Ikeburkuro, and Takashita dori has stores. LDS, LB-03, ANAP, and baby SHOOP are popular hip-hop stores that sell import clothes (like Baby Phat) as well as Japanese hip-hop brands. ANAP usually had the cheapest clothes and they tended to fit the best out of the other brands (but most of their clothes are still one size fits all and none of the stores would let me try on shirts...only skirts and dresses). If you're a guy, LDS sells men's clothes and there are a lot of niche stores around Takashita-dori and Center-gai in Shibuya.I think LB-03 sells men's clothes too, but I'm not totally sure. There are a lot of black men there (often Nigerian) that try to lure people into their shops, but from my experience, they more likely to approach Japanese people than non-Japanese people. And the stuff they sell often is bootleg and overpriced. Again this was back in 2007.

Before you go, I suggest you try to get a hold of a magazine like Woofin. They often will have a list of clothing shops and where they're located.

Hey Banna!!!

Ahhhhh Thank you sooooo much!!! I really appreciate yor post!! Very informative ne!! lol (^_^)

Ahhh i see...you didn't have a problem getting into club Harlem...well that's good! I'm also a black female so maybe they'll let me in aswell without any problems!! lol Also, thank you for the other list of clubs which you mentioned! I shall definitely research them! Ohhh, have you ever been to club Vanilla?? I heard that that's another big club in Tokyo but i dont think that they are specifically a hip-hop club...maybe im wrong??!! lol

Ohhh and as for the list of hip-hop clothing stores, thank you again!! I'll see if any of them have websites so that I can check them out!!

I ammmm sooo looking forward to going!!! Oh and I shall buy that magazine that u reccomended!! (^_^)

I don't think I went to Vanilla. For the most part I didn't go clubbing in the Roppongi area. I mostly stayed around Shibuya.

I will say to be careful if you go clubbing alone though. Men (Japanese and foreign) at the clubs were quite aggressive (being WAY too touchy-feely) so be careful if you go to clubs alone. I experienced this mostly at Harlem and not so much at Unity and Nuts, which is why I liked them more.

Also I thought of some more magazines you may want to check out. Woofin Girl is well...Woofin for women, LOL. There's also Luire which is another Japanese urban fashion magazine.

Hey Banna!!

Ahhhhh really!!!! The men were all touchy feel! Especially at Club Harlem!! That's soooo not good!! Thank you for the warning! I shall definitely be careful!! Im not gonna go alone though! Im going with my older sister!!

Ahh thank you!! Woofin Girl and Luire...I shall be sure to check those out to!!

Ohh...what other places do you think I should visit while in Tokyo?? (food places, chopping, attractions etc.) and have you ever been to a cafe in Shibuya called "Happy Dinning Ghetto?" My friend told me about that and it sounded amusing so I wanted to check it out! lol

Sorry 4 all the Q)'s!!

Doumo!! (^_^)

Never heard of Happy Ghetto Dining. Maybe it's new? My friends and I liked going to izakaya (kinda like a bar). They're all over the place. There are some franchise izakaya but I can't remember the name of it right now (something like Waka...shoot I'm really drawing a blank). We also went to places like Yoshinoya, Ootoya and Pepper Lunch. There are ramen shop all over the place to that have good/cheap eats. I would also say check out a fast food joint like Lotteria or Mos Burger just for the heck of it (And there's Krispy Kreme, McD's, Burger King, and Wendy's in Tokyo too if you're curious about difference between menus). I can't remember too much about food, LOL I did a lot of eating from convenience stores.

For fun things we would do karaoke. If you do an all-night plan it can be kinda expensive (about $40 a person), but we always had fun. Karaoke places like Shidax are all over the place. Most places have karaoke in Japanese and English. If you're REALLY daring, you can go to a host club in Shinjuku, but I would say you'd need a lot of money and be able to speak at least conversational Japanese. Definitely check out a Book-Off. There's a HUGE one in Tokyo (I forget where...I think it's in Harajuku). They sell Japanese and foreign media. I used to by Japanese versions of American CDs because they often had extra tracks that were not on the American releases of the same CD.

If you're interested in general shopping, besides Shibuya, I would say check out Omotesando in the Harajuku area. It is pretty pricey, but fun for window shopping. La Foret (Harajuku) is great. In Ikebukuro, there's shopping at Sunshine City. But a lot of these places have the same clothes and/or styles, and you won't find much in terms of price differences. If you have time, there's Shimokitazawa which is great if you want to find some more unique items or clothing.

There's also Yoyogi Park, which is in between Harajuku and Shibuya (you can walk instead of taking the train). On weekends, the park has a lot going on in terms of performances and cosplay. I've seen a few break dancers there (if you're there in the summer, B-Boy Park takes place there). Meiji Shrine is in the area too.

The HMV music store in Shibuya is HUGE and also doubles as a spot for live radio casts with Japanese/Foreign celebrities. I don't remember what day this happens though, but I saw Koda Kumi there one time.

If you ever miss the last train, you can stay at a manga cafe. My friends and I would do this for fun once in a while. You pay about $15 for the night and have access to comics, movies, the internet and video games. Some ever have karaoke, and table tennis.

Then there's Odaiba, which is not in the main Tokyo area, but not hard to get to. It's a really fun place. You can check out the Fuji TV Station there, shop, and go bowling. Sega Joypolis is there and it's FUN! It's kinda like an indoor virtual amusement park.

Hey banna!!!!

Ahhhh really truly thank u for all the info which you've provided me!! Because of your superb info, It's like i now have a mini manual guide to Tokyo! LOL!!!

The karaoke seems fun!!!

You know, I heard abut the HMV store in Shibuya where celebrities always appear! I read about one in ViVi magazine where Ayumi Hamasaki appeared and it was soooo crowded!! Oh my daze!!! You saw Koda Kumi once!!!! I love Koda!!! I have most of her CD's!! LOL!! I wanna see her in concert aswell....hopefully she has one this summer....

(continuation from last post...i accidentally submitted it!)

the karaoke seems fun!!! the thing you said about the conversational japanese thing shouldn't be a problem because i speak japanese! (^_^) lol

Ohhh if i have anymore questions, can i please ask u??

Doumo!!!